Monday, October 10, 2011

I know a lot of you have been thinking about custom dolls. I receive numerous emails nearly every day from folks who have a very specific doll in mind and are looking for a custom slot. I will be honest, I would never have enough time available to get around to making as many customs as I receive requests...yes, it's that many.

On my end, I cannot tell you how much fun I have been having these past couple weeks working on fewer dolls which gave me a chance to make them extremely special. I think its fairly evident though :o) I truly have so much fun playing around at my own pace, knitting and making new things for each doll. This is something I do not get to do very often because of the amount of time involved in making 20+ dolls each week

I spent a great deal of time thinking about these things lately.

How to strike a balance between work and family. How to find a way for mamas and papas to get the exact doll they have been wanting in time for a special day, birthday or holiday. How to get to the point where I am only working on a super special few doll each week.

Well, I think we have found a solution...

Introducing...

"Mama Made"

"Mama Made" is the best made...we all know this :o)

So What is it that we are talking about? Mama Made is how we are gonna help you to get the exact doll you want..with just a little bit of extra effort on your part :o)

Here is how it will work...

First, we have basic unfinished dolls :o)
This is exactly how they will come to you...a quality handcrafted adorable canvas waiting for your special touch.

We start by selling the blank bodies all fully assembled in 5 basic colors...Peach, Light Tan, Golden, Dark Tan and Chocolate. Our initial line will be 15 inch bodies.
(Over time, if this goes well, we hope to include 12 and 10 inch bodies as well. Not right away though.)

Each body is made exactly like a DFH using the same perfectly tied and shaped heads. Our expert sewing mamas will assemble these with the exact same eye for detail. What is different? Well, each Mama Made has a special Mama Made tag :o)

The bodies come blank.
No face, no belly button, no clothes and no hair.
This is where you will come in...and don't worry, we will help you thru it step by step with full instructions and input on how to properly place your eyes and mouth.
You will not be alone :o)
We will have a special online, password protected online forum where you can get all the info you need from the ladies and myself as well as post pics of your progress and share this progress with other mamas making their special dollies. Access to this page will be granted as soon as your Mama Made is on its way to you :o)
We want to make this fun and have a great community feel to it.

Next, we have hair.

Of course you need access to the best yarns available for doll hair.

We will offer the basic yarns we use for our own dolls....yep, the exact same yarns. Boucle, dreads and mohair. Both dyed and undyed (yep for those of you who wish, you will be able to dye your own). Of course any art yarn will be up to you to find, but I think we can recommend some pretty awesome spinning mamas who could hook you right on up :o)

How to attach the hair?

You can choose any way you desire.
We will offer three basic ways with full instructions and input.
First, you can go the easiest route and simply sew the yarn into strips and then attach them directly to the head.

Second, a little more labor intensive, you can attach a crocheted cap (we will have plenty of caps available) and attach each strand one by one using a latch hook. Not too difficult but a lot more time consuming than the previous method.

And finally third, a hybrid option...sew strips on top of the cap using our own DFH method..the one I used before I made the switch to our all over hair.

Clothes...

We will have every article of clothes available..undies, shoes, pants, tops, pjs and dresses as well as the occasional dress up ensemble like fairies and mermaids :o) so you can dress your dolly however you wish.

We think this is a seriously wonderful opportunity for all of us.

First and foremost, it is a wonderful way for you all to get a completely custom doll at the time you want it, without paying custom prices....sure, it will cost you your time and energy.

We will give you top quality handwork...everyone knows our quality is exceptional and made to last.

With a little help from us, you will be able to make a special heirloom best friend for your sweeties.

You have the luxury of taking your time getting each item...no need to rush to get it all at once...unless that is what you wish to do. You can choose whether to use our yarns or get your own...you can buy our clothes and accessories or make your own.

On my end, I will be able to slow down a great deal and only make a small number of extra special dolls. I will also be able to put the main focus of my time into my family again.

My sewing mamas Jo, Jess, Kristin, Kathy and Cherie all get to continue doing what they really enjoy.

Like I said...win/win

We will have our first launch of Mama Mades this week on Thursday in the morning. They will be on a whole new page of their own with a cart system of their own...It will all be linked thru our website. I will post a direct link on FB as soon as they go live.

Here is the cost break down:

Unfinished fully assembled 15 inch body $95.00

Crocheted caps $10.00
Hand dyed yarn in hanks of 100 yards to 125 yards will range between $20.00-$25.00 depending on the yarn used.
We will offer undyed hanks and cones of the same yarn.